Garment label and method of use



Aug. 6, 1968 s. M. VOICE 3,395,470

GARMENT LABEL AND METHOD OF USE Filed Dec. 13, 1965 TYPE OF SUlTiE! NATURALEICLASSICCIFASHION HERE IS A SAMPLE SWATCH OF MY NEW 'Boiony' 50o I S1VHIS3I INVHIS3OHS I SMOOS/SEllL/SLHIHS LLSI'I )IOEIHO I I 'soyossaoao pawuqpwoa l i flpadold am scams d aq o; I i

INVENTOR' STANLEY M. VOICE er Caeuw '&COA2/n/ ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent 3,395,470 GARMENT LABEL AND METHOD OF USE Stanley M. Voice, Wyncote, Pa., assignor to H. Darolf & Sons, Inc., Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Dec. 13, 1965, Ser. No. 513,362 6 Claims. (Cl. 40-2) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A method for identifying the fabric of a garment which comprises providing a label having a window therein which is permanently secured to excess removable fabric of the garment. The label is secured so that the excess removable fabric of the garment shows through the window. The label can be removed by cutting the fabric around said label whereby a label for identifying the fabric is provided having a small piece of the fabric of the garment appearing through the window. A purchaser of the garment can then use the label to purchase matching accessories.

This invention relates to a garment label and its method of use, and more particularly, to a label which is used in identifying and making a record of the fabric of any given garment.

It is now customary in the garment industry to have purchasers buy a complete outfit when the major garment of the outfit is purchased. Thus, men will now buy shirts, socks, shoes and ties to match a new suit at the time the suit is purchased. In order to be certain that the accessories will properly match the suit, it is now necessary for the purchaser of the suit to carry the suit from the clothing department to the various accessories departments. This means of identifying the suit fabric has proved to be quite a problem, especially in large department stores where the mens clothing department and the accessories department are on different floors.

The garment label of this invention will overcome all of the present difiiculties encountered in identifying a garment fabric. Thus, the garment label is secured to the garment .at a position where excess fabric is present. The bottom of uncuifed mens trousers has proved to be an extremely elfective position for the label. The label is secured to the bottom of one leg of the trousers and contains a small opening through which the fabric of the trousers appears. The intended purpose for the label is to cut the same from the trousers whereby the small piece of fabric will appear through the opening and will be held in place by the label. In this way, only the label need by taken to the accessories or furnishings department without the necessity of having to carry the entire suit.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a novel garment label.

It is another object of this invention to provide a garment label having a novel method of use.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a garment label which can be used for identifying the fabric of a garment.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a garment label which can be severed from a garment along with a swatch of the garment fabric for future identification of the fabric of the garment.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a novel combination of a garment and label.

These and other objects of this invention are accomplished by providing a garment label adapted to be secured to a portion of a garment having excess removable fabric, said garment label adapted to be secured to a portion of said excess fabric, said garment label having instructions thereon for cutting and removing the label from said garment, whereby said portion of said excess fabric will be removed with said label and said fabric will be readily identified thereafter.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the garment label of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a pair of trousers having the garment label of this invention secured to the bottom thereof;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the trousers of FIG. 2 with the bottom of the trousers folded upwardly prior to the making of cuffs on the trousers; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the garment label of this invention after it has been removed from the garment, with a portion of the fabric secured therein.

Referring now in greater detail to the various figures of the drawings wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts, a garment label embodying the present invention is generally shown at 10 in FIG. 1. Label 10 can be made from any label material generally used in garments, such as paper or plastic sheeting.

Label 10 is basically rectangular and includes a center score line 12. The upper portion of the label includes a rectangular opening 14 which passes therethrough. Printed matter 16 appears on the top half of the label and printed matter 18 appears on the bottom half. The printed matter in the top half is right-side up and the printed matter in the bottom half is upside down for purpose to be explained hereinafter.

Printed matter 16 includes printing relating to the type of garment. Thus, in the case of a suit, the cut of the suit can be natural, classic or high fashion. The printing on the label includes appropriate blocks to indicate which type of suit the fabric secured by the label will have been cut from. The upper printed matter also will carry an indication that the fabric is cut from a particular brand of suit. Thus, the label will also serve as advertising for the manufacturer of the suit in that the manufacturers trademark can appear on the label.

The printed matter on the lower portion of the label carries instructions to the tailor or salesman to cut and remove the label. Since a portion of the fabric of the suit will be enclosed within the label, this fabric portion will be retained in the label. The lower portion also contains instructions for the customer to take the swatch of fabric and the associated label to the furnishings department of the store in order to purchase accessories for the suit. A checklist of such accessories as shirts, ties, socks, shoes, handkerchiefs and hats is included on the lower portion of the label.

In use, the label is secured to a garment at a position where excess fabric is present. By Way of example, label 10 is secured to trousers 20 in FIG. 2. Trousers 20 are part of a suit and are obviously of the same fabric as the jacket of the suit. The label is secured by first folding it along score line 12. Thereafter, the bottom edge 22 of the trousers is placed within the label in such a manner as to have the edge abut the crease made along score line 12. The label is placed on the trousers in such a manner as to have it envelope one ply of fabric, with the opening 14 of the label being against the outside face of the trouser fabric. The label is secured in place by any suitable means such as a staple 24.

When a tailor fits the trousers on a customer he will first fold the bottom edge of each leg upwardly to form a temporary cuff 26. At the time he does this the lower portion containing printed matter 18 will appear. This portion contains the instructions to cut off the label from the pant leg to which it is attached. The purpose of having the printing 18 reversed from the printing 16 is that the customer will be able to read the label when he is trying on the trousers and will note that the label is to be removed in the event that the tailor or salesman forgot to remove it at the time the temporary cuff was made prior to the customers trying on the trousers.

The total height of the label is such as to insure that the portion of the fabric removed by cutting around the label will not interfere in any way with the further tailoring on the trousers. Thus, under normal circumstances, approximately a two inch length of fabric is removed when cuffs are placed in the fabric. For this reason, the total height of the label in the folded position shown should not be substantially greater than 1% inches. However, the labels height is dependent upon the amount of fabric which will normally be removed, and can therefore be varied.

After the label has been removed, a swatch of fabric 28 is maintained within the label. The salesman of the suit will then mark the appropriate block to indicate the nature of the suit that has been purchased. The purpose for this is that the accessory salesman can better know the type of accessories which will be appropriate with the fabric of the suit if he also knows the style of suit that has been purchased. The customer can then take the label and the associated fabric to the accessory department and use the swatch of fabric as a means of identifying the fabric of the suit to aid him and the salesman'in selecting the appropriate accessories. The customer can also use the label as a means of keeping a record of the specific fabric of the suit. Thus, the rigid label is more easily maintained in a particular location than the loose piece of fabric might be.

Having the opening 14 in the label also serves an additional function. Thus, the customer will know that the opening 15 will always be on the side of the fabric which is the outer side. In this way he can always recall the exact outer appearance of his suit fabric and there is no possibility of the customers being indecisive as to which side is the exposed side of the fabric when the suit will be worn.

It is therefore seen that the label of this invention provides a novel and efficient manner of identifying the fabric of a garment. Although this invention has been specifically described with respect to a suit because there is always excess fabric in the trousers of a suit, it is to be understood that the label can be used on any garment having excess removable fabric. Using the label of this invention obviates the problem of having to carry an entire suit or the jacket or trousers of the suit to the accessories department after the suit has been purchased. Furthermore, the label of this invention is useful for keeping a permanent record of the fabric of any given suit in a small and convenient place, such as a desk drawer. In this way, the customer will always have samples of the fabric of all of his suits readily available should he decide to purchase a number of accessory items, such as neckties or socks.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed as the invention is:

1. A method of identifying the fabric of a garment comprising the steps of:

forming a label from a paper blank;

forming a window in said label;

permanently securing said label to excess removable fabric of said garment so that said fabric shows through said window; and

removing a portion of said excess fabric by cutting around said label.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said label includes instructions thereon for cutting and removing the label from said garment.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said garment label further includes additional instructions for directing the purchaser of the garment containing the label to take the removed label and associated fabric to the furnishings department in order to select accessories for the garment.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said garment comprises a pair of trousers and said label is secured at the lower edge of said trousers.

5. The method of claim 4 and further including the step of forming a transverse fold in said label so that the lower edge of one leg of said trousers is received in said label when it is in a folded condition and said label is secured to said leg while in said folded condition.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said trousers are the trousers of a suit and said label includes printing thereon to indicate the style of the suit.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,907,393 5/1933 Tooley 40-2 2,322,713 6/1943 Hirschhorn 40128 2,464,113 3/ 1949 Bernstein 402 2,739,399 3/1956 Henson 40-2 FOREIGN PATENTS 11,172 6/1900 Great Britain.

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner.

W. J. CONTRERAS, Assistant Examiner. 

